This invention relates to a drug preparation instruction system having printers for printing prescription-based drug preparation instructions.
A typical such system uses a small computer such as a personal computer. Necessary data is entered and stored into the small computer from a host computer or through input means such as a keyboard. The necessary data may include patient names or numbers, drug types such as powders and tablets, drug names, dosage, and directions for administering the drugs.
Such a system also includes a plurality of printers each capable of printing drug preparation instructions for only one or one group of many different drug types.
The “drug types” include “tablets to be packaged”, “heat-sealed tablets”, “powder drugs to be packaged”, “heat-sealed powder drugs”, “liquid drugs” and “externally applied drugs”. The term “to be packaged” means that the tablets or powder drugs are to be packaged by a packaging machine. The term “heat-sealed” means that tablets or powder drugs that have already been packaged and sealed are to be simply counted and delivered to patients as they are. But drugs may be categorized in different ways.
The reason why each printer is adapted to print drug print instructions for only one drug type or only one group of drug types is because different types of drugs are usually prepared at different drug preparation stations spaced from one another. Thus, by arranging a plurality of printers at each drug preparation station, pharmacists do not have to leave their position to check the printers. Printers are placed e.g. on drug preparation tables having drug storage shelves at the respective drug preparation stations.
Drugs prepared at the respective drug preparation stations are put in trays corresponding to respective patients. Trays have display means as disclosed in unexamined Japanese patent publication 8-131519, that display patient ID numbers and drug types, such as tablets and powder drugs. The trays may then be delivered to a drug delivery counter on a conveyor, as disclosed in unexamined Japanese patent publication 9-51922, or simply hand-carried to the counter.
Among the printers of this system, the printer for printing instructions for “heat-sealed tablets” is placed on a table at the heat-sealed tablet preparation station, and directly connected to the control circuit, which is programmed such that the printer prints only instructions about these types of drugs.
For example, the printer placed at the heat-sealed powder drug preparation station can print only instructions concerning heat-sealed powder drugs. Thus, a problem will arise if, due to relocations of drug preparation stations, it becomes necessary to use the printer at the powder drug preparation station as a printer for printing instructions for e.g. “heat-sealed tablets”. In such a case, it is necessary to reprogram the control circuit altogether. Such reprogramming is extremely time-consuming and troublesome.
The same problem arises if it is necessary to add a new drug preparation station and thus a new printer for printing instructions concerning drugs prepared in this station. In such a case, too, the control circuit has to be reprogrammed altogether.
Another problem with this system is that information provided by each printer is far from enough. For example, the system does not provide information on whether patients should be given instructions for taking the drugs. The system additionally does not display information on whether drugs for a certain patient should be divided into a plurality of batches and put into a plurality of trays. In this system, information on whether instructions should be given to patients, that is, the doctor's orders on whether it is necessary to explain to patients how to take the drugs, which is written in doctor's order sheets, is prepared besides prescriptions and put into trays. Thus, a pharmacist at the drug delivery counter has to pick up and read the order sheet in every tray to determine whether or not he or she has to explain to the respective patient, how to take the respective drug.
Trays are usually stacked one on another for transportation. Thus, in order to pick up and read an order sheet in one tray, it is necessary to remove all the above trays. Order sheets in some or most trays may indicate that the customer needs instructions for taking the drugs. In any event, the pharmacist has to read all the order sheets in order to confirm that such guidance is not necessary. Delivering drugs to patients is thus time-consuming and tends to hinder smooth flow of the entire drug preparation line.
Conventional drug preparation instruction sheets contain no information on dividing drugs for one patient into a plurality of batches to put each batch in a separate tray, because no one has ever thought of such a thing. Thus, if a large amount of drugs are prescribed for one patient, the drugs tend to partially fall off while being transported on a single tray. Thus, it is often necessary to send drug preparation instruction sheets in a tray separately from prescribed drugs.
An object of this invention is to provide a drug preparation instruction system which is free of these problems.